Safety Notice: Delays and closures upcoming for Junction Creek Road resurfacing project

Bayfield, Colo., May 27, 2025 —Junction Creek Road chip and seal work is scheduled to begin July 9, and will be completed no later than July 23, 2025 from mile 0 to mile 2.15. The project includes the temporary closure of both Colorado Trail parking lots on July 14 through 16 (map link). This road resurfacing project is located on the Columbine Ranger District northwest of Durango, CO, and includes applying chip and seal materials to Junction Creek Road (NFSR 171), both Colorado Trailhead parking lots, and applying gravel to the Logchutes trailhead parking lot.

Closures and delays expected: 

• Visitors should expect up to 30-minute delays on Junction Creek Road for the duration of the project, including weekends. Visitors should take extra safety precautions for heavy equipment and loose gravel.
• No vehicles will be allowed in the upper or lower Colorado Trail parking lots during resurfacing on July 14-16th. Colorado Trail through-hikers and day hikers alike should plan for alternate transportation, whether a pickup/drop-off or by accessing the Colorado Trail from Dry Fork Trail #616 (see map). Vehicles left in the parking lots after midnight on July 13th will be towed at the owner’s expense.
• The Logchutes Trailhead will be closed for resurfacing on July 11. Vehicles left in the parking lot after midnight on July 10th will be towed at the owner’s expense.

Project need and history: The San Juan NF has a long history of attempting different approaches to stabilizing the Junction Creek Road surface to improve road durability and to prevent dust and road sediment from impacting Junction Creek’s aquatic life and water quality. Past treatments included magnesium chloride, pine bind and several other treatments. This segment of road has proven too heavily used for those flexible approaches, and current road maintenance capabilities cannot keep up with the high level of recreation traffic. This project is also in preparation for future logging operations and vegetation treatments to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires and prepare the landscape to have low intensity/high frequency fire return intervals, mimicking natural regimes. The chip and seal approach is a proven industry standard for heavily used rural roads, and will create a long-lasting surface with return maintenance intervals of approximately five years. 

Since 2023, the Columbine Ranger District has hosted multiple open houses and other opportunities for public input on this project, which is part of the Junction/Falls Creek Integrated Resource Management Project, which was signed in 2024. After thoughtful consideration on various options and conversations with interested public and stakeholders, the chip and seal method was selected. This project is funded by the Southwest Colorado Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project (CFLRP).

Additional details will be provided closer to implementation. For more information, please contact the project information line at ‪(970) 501-5830, or project lead Cody Jones at cody.j.jones@usda.gov.

For information on the San Juan National Forest, call (970) 247-4874, visit the forest website, or follow us on social media (X and Facebook).

-USDA-

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